Beisa oryx

Beisa oryx Oryx beisa

ClassMammalia
OrderArtiodactyla
FamilyBovidae
Size1,2m
Weight150kg for ♂, 120kg for ♀
Gestation8½ months
Birth1
Life-span20 years
Diet
herbivorous

Habitat
semi-desert areas

Range
eastern Africa (Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania)


They live in groups of 12–30. They drink regularly when water is available but part of their food (roots, bulbs and tubers), which they obtain by strenuously digging in the ground, provides them with a substitute source of hydration in case of drought.
 
This species, the majority of which lives outside of protected zones, is endangered because of hunting and the encroachment of domestic herds on its biotope.




Status in the wild (Source: IUCN)

  • Not evaluated
    NE
  • Data deficient
    DD
  • Least concern
    LC
  • Near threatened
    NT
  • Vulnerable
    VU
  • Endangered
    EN
  •  Critically endangered
    CR
  • Extinct in the wild
    EW
  • Extinct
    EX

In the zoo